The City of Alliance Parks department maintains 109 acres of park land, which includes five mini-parks, two neighborhood parks, two community parks and three sports complexes; all of which contain a broad variety of activities and amenities which are all free to the public to enjoy. This department also maintains the Cemetery, Carhenge and the Alliance Swimming Pool. In addition to open spaces, this department maintains the Central Park Fountain, seven public restrooms, five picnic shelters, Laing Lake, the shelter house, three concession stand facilities, eight baseball fields, the trail system, tennis courts and many irrigation systems of various size and scope.
This Department is overseen by the Culture and Leisure Services Director, Shana Brown and daily operations are managed by the Parks Foreman, Tad Prelle. The department consists of five full-time employees and eleven seasonal employees. Seasonal employees are vital to the maintenance of our recreational areas, as these positions relieve the increased workload of our full-time employees, while teaching the younger generations work ethic, leadership and communication skills. In addition to staff, the City partners with a diverse group of dedicated volunteers who assist with facility maintenance and recreation program management throughout the summer.
Alliance’s park system is an imperative focus of community life, providing unity of various neighborhoods within the city. According to the National Recreation and Park Association, Alliance’s outdoor park and recreation facilities far exceeds the standard for a community of our size.
The Parks Department has utilized grant funding for many miscellaneous projects throughout the parks system including the current trail system, to redesign and vegetate the creek through Central Park, to install aerators at Laing Lake, to dredge, reseal and develop habitat in Laing Lake and most recently to renovate the historic Sunken Gardens.
Parks staff is diligently working to prepare all of the facilities for the busy summer season. Staff is also working on an improvement project to stabilize and improve spectator spaces at Bower Park. Spring plans include the construction of roof structures over the dugouts at the softball complex. Currently the CLS Director is looking into grant funding to combine with insurance funds to replace the lighting system at the softball complex, as well as researching funding opportunities for expanding indoor recreation space in response to input from a community meeting last winter.
We are incredibly grateful for these hardworking people. Without their dedication, we could not accomplish our mission of Building the Best Hometown in America.
(Paid for by the City of Alliance)